Sr Product Solutions Manager

At Disney, we’re storytellers. We make the impossible, possible. The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) is a world-class entertainment and technological leader. Walt’s passion was to continuously envision new ways to move audiences around the world—a passion that remains our touchstone in an enterprise that stretches from theme parks, resorts and a cruise line to sports, news, movies and a variety of other businesses. Uniting each endeavor is a commitment to creating and delivering unforgettable experiences — and we’re constantly looking for new ways to enhance these exciting experiences.

This role sits in the Disney Consumer Products (DCP) - Licensing Technology organization within Disney Experiences (DX), a division of The Walt Disney Company (TWDC).  DCP uses a proprietary Portal application to interact with our Licensees, ingest their royalty statements, collect their forecast, and provide key data on their global licensing contracts. This Portal integrates with other core Licensing Financial Systems such as Royalty Management, Financial Planning, and Contract Lifecycle Management.

The Senior Product Manager will identify workflow improvements, facilitate conversations with our Controllership, Revenue Accounting, Finance and Licensees across the global Disney Consumer Products (DCP) Segment and technology partners to align overall business and technical objectives.  This role will drive change management plans to prepare the business for next generation features in the Smart Forecasting platform. This person will collaborate with project management and software development teams to support the launch and ongoing operational improvements of our Licensing Financial Systems. In the near future, this role will be leveraged for expansion of the Licensing Portal experience to the Contract Lifecycle Management Replacement Project.

The successful candidate will have a global perspective, looking across all regions when developing solutions to meet the needs of the organization.  The Senior Product Manager will ensure IT processes are repeatable, recommending smart approaches to gather requirements and deliver projects while providing business value. The candidate will identify and assess potential “forward-thinking” solutions for both technical and business feasibility. 

You will be able to work well under pressure, thrive on change, and seek opportunities to find solutions for new business opportunities. You will be detail oriented, have strong communication skills as well as be able to operate and interact at many levels in an organization.
 

Responsibilities

• Design and manage the full-cycle development of DCP technology products from ideation to delivery with an understanding of Disney’s Licensed merchandise product lifecycle
• Translate finance, revenue accounting or contract management goals into a technology product strategy and roadmaps by effectively communicating with global business partners
• Collaborate with engineering, design, architecture, and quality assurance partners to ensure development is in line with product strategy and roadmap
• Define processes for DCP applications and platforms, system specifications, and working parameters for software use and compatibility
• Develop Proof of Concept prototypes collaborating with engineering, architecture and technical operations 
• Connect with users regularly to have a deep understanding of their needs, pain points, and how they experience your products
• Define and write clear requirements and user stories for the development team
• Participate in and influence technical discussions to solve complex business/system problems
• Prioritize the product backlog and make recommendations to business partners and leadership while considering trade-offs
• Establish product release plan and set expectations with new feature delivery
• Perform analysis across a complex finance environment to assess data accuracy, troubleshoot issues, and answer partner questions
• Create user training documentation and host user training sessions for product adoption
• Demonstrate knowledge and mastery of Agile project methodology and change management principles

Qualifications

• 4+ years of experience in building consumer-quality technology products from ideation to launch/support
• 5+ years of experience in Product Management, defining and implementing end-to-end product strategies influencing the business
• Experience with highly integrated accounting applications, including interfaces to SAP, forecasting, data warehouses, master data management, and product master
• Demonstrated ability to define and shape future products by contributing to the framework (architecture) used across multiple products or systems.
• Expertise in multi-layered technical environments which shape next generation initiatives
• Experience in creating product roadmaps for new and existing products
• Excellent organizational and communication skills, with the ability to balance multiple priorities and set expectations
• Proven leader that nurtures positive relationships with business users and technology engineering partners
• Ability to explain complex concepts in a digestible way across business and technology partners at all levels
• Experience in Agile/Scrum methodologies

• Excellent analytical, trouble shooting and problem solving skills with attention to detail
• Ability to lead cross-team projects

Preferred Qualifications

• Understanding of Licensing and Consumer Products industry with demonstrated domain experience in Revenue Accounting, Finance and Contract Management Systems including, but not limited to contract processes and practices, licensee royalty statement submission processes, royalty and revenue transaction processing
• Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) certification
• SAFe Agilist certified
• Deep understanding of tools such as Jira, Confluence, among others
• Peripheral certifications such as CSM, PMP, CBAP, etc.

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The hiring range for this position in CA is $126,400 - $169,500 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.